Nigeria: The Youth at Lunch with Jonathan

Facebook once again presents the context of this editorial where I got involved in a conversation that pertained to an invitation that soon to be inaugurated president of Nigeria extended to the youth to join him for lunch.

There are many easy angles to the story but one should attempt to concentrate on the important points.

The election season of April 2011 showed that the youth of Nigeria who make up over half the population of the country are an important constituency to whom politicians vying for office have to give some serious attention.

They represented the bulk of electoral officials as members of the National Youth Service Corps that were recruited to first register voters and then man the polling stations in what generally can be considered freer, fairer and more credible elections than many conducted before.

Recognition and participation

In a patriarchal society where the youth are usually, berated, belittled, patronised and ignored as incapable, inexperienced and neophyte, they showed they could be organised, assertive, sensible, innovative and facilitators for change.

One can say that the President has recognised as much about this pressure group to have decided that they lunch with him.

Amongst the many effusive with praise, genuflecting with nauseating annoyance and plumbing the depths of sycophancy, one spoke with deference but candour with the subtext that the president had a responsibility to clean up politics and that he was being watched.

That should have been the substance of the discourse and how to press the president and his good office into the service of Nigeria for its betterment and prosperity.

He has the reins

Goodluck Jonathan, whether we like it or not, is de facto, de jure and bona fide President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, until disputes abrogate the declared results, he has right and licence to exercise the office of President for a full term of four years.

Criticism and opprobrium might be rained upon him but in a winner-takes-all projection of power, he holds the reins and whilst many might disagree with him, nothing is gained in being disagreeable, denigrating or carping excessively with condemnation, complaint and abuse.

The least every Nigerian should hope for is to have him perform, deliver and excel, there is just no time for the politics of rancour, division and calumny when what Nigeria needs the most is for anyone, anybody, everyone, everybody, someone or somebody who has the power to do something to get on and do it – fortunately for some and unfortunately for others, that person is Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan.

However, it goes without saying that some were annoyed with those who somehow earned the privilege to dine with the President.

The patronage system

At the end of the lunch, it transpired that a decision had been made to generously defray the travelling costs of the invitees, in the process, those who travelled from within the city of the event received a certain sum and others from outside the city received a greater sum of money.

Nigerian politics is one of patronage and it probably was to be expected that a largesse will be doled out, it does not then mean that recipients should suddenly lose nerve and become supine; receiving a generous gift does not a supporter make, those recipients should be accorded the benefit of doubt that they have not sold out or sold their souls to a cause they might in principle want to challenge long after that lunch was over.

The rights and wrongs of this are debatable, the ideal would have been for the attendees to submit an expense claim covering the costs of attending the event but that would have constituted a generally logistical headache for lazy apparatchiks, it was easier to just dole out the money.

We must not forget that the invited guests who might not have been people of means could have declined the invitation and been otherwise engaged in their professional daily activities.

Pretentious Righteous Indignation

An observer of the discourse put all the controversy generated down to righteous indignation to which one could only add the sense of pretentiousness that arrogates to the Nigerian system a set of Utopian standards of uncommon idealism.

The fact is Nigeria is a system that needs to be worked; it is a beast that isn’t easily tamed; and a leviathan to be led by cunning.

The clamour for change to certain absurd practices that have become part of the Nigerian sub-culture and tradition of doing things is timely and applauded but it cannot be done by irrational protest, opportunistic challenges to authority or by ignoring the context, environment and setting to make statements meant to ostracise, castigate and deplore.

Working the system

The power distance index that is lower in the West and helped by the use of English in most cases for international communication but does not obviate the need for civility and deference – that index is still quite high in Nigeria and hence it requires wisdom and discretion to convey a rebuke to those whose office confers on them leadership, power and the sometimes the absence of humility for the greater expression of hubris.

It is in light of this that one appreciates the meeting with the youth and the offer of an allowance to those who were available to receive it without any slight to the person of the President – it was also convenient than no one was present to be ungracious to publicly reject the offer in protest.

The contrariness that became the exchange was very uncharitable and malevolent; a predilection for controversy so unbecoming of those of whom much more was desired.

Understanding the system

In all, for the many issues that face Nigeria, this was a storm in a teacup that has unreasonably developed into catastrophic natural disaster, the intention of instigators of the discourse cannot altogether be said to be altruistic, but then, one was left with analogy shared on Twitter.

You do not burn the bridge over a crocodile infested river just because the architect built a wobbly bridge – if that bridge was all you had to cross the river, you carefully negotiate it for both your safety and that of others or risk the welcoming jaws of the crocodiles below.

Even if a new bridge had to be built, that wobbly bridge might well be the inspiration for a better one, the system called Nigeria is changing but it will take some time and sadly, the impatient will fail to see the little changes taking place and eventually they will be left behind when the tide has completely turned.

Acknowledgment

Chude Jideonwo delivered the speech that should have been the focus of the interaction of the President with the youth but its importance was sadly relegated to the background of sensationalist but unhelpful opinion peddling.

1) Very nice piece. I agree with you that the idea behind the meeting with the youths was laudable and highly welcome. Everyone that was invited had the right to go. It might have been a personnel decision or collective depending on if it was a ‘Youth organisation’.
2) What I don’t understand is the “PATRONAGE SYSTEM” as you put it. In your words – “Nigerian politics is one of patronage and it probably was to be expected that a largesse will be doled out, it does then mean that recipients should suddenly lose nerve and be supine, receiving a generous gift does not a supporter make, those recipients should be accorded the benefit of doubt that they have not sold out or sold their souls to a cause they might in principle want to challenge long after that lunch was over”. When will we learn to do things the right way in Nigeria? We want change but we can’t do simple things right. Let me explain what I mean:1) The event was not hurriedly planned, so proper logistics for the accommodation and transportation could have being sorted out before they came. 2) The event had a guest list complied for it – either individually or group/organisation wise. If we really wanted to do things the right way, why couldn’t this list be used to plan properly. Let’s say Sule from XYZ, youth organisation was invited. A feed back mechanism is put in place to confirm his attendance, location he is based or travelling from. Plans are put in place for him for his travel via plane or road and accommodation at hotel ABC in Lagos. This details are communicated to him via the feed back mechanism. He picks up his travel tickets or money from a contact point in his location and comes to Lagos. He checks in to hotel ABC. On the lunch day, a bus picks him up and other attendees and transports him to the venue. After the meeting, bus takes him back to Hotel ABC. He departs for his location the next day. 3) If all this had been put in place, would there have been any need for “generously defraying the transports costs”? Would the essence of the whole event had better achieved without all the accompanying noise if this had been done? 4) For those staying in Lagos, what was the transport money for? Yes they left their primary business and went for the lunch, if it was for a cause they really believe in, why get paid transport money or “inconvenience” money?
Change in Nigeria like you said is not a 1 day process but if we the youths can’t effect the change we want in Nigeria to start with our own events/initiatives, then we really have a long way to go.

I will repeat again that I am not in anyway against the event, just that things could have be done better and saved us all the after-math that has diluted its importance and relevance.

I appalled anyone would defend transport fare being given to participants from Lagos. 50K! Was it to defray the cost of chattering a helicopter to an fro? And if the speech delivered by Jideonwo is what the youths should focus on, I’m afraid we’re in serious trouble in this nation. Do we focus on protecting the corpers and not tackle the causes of the violence, not prevent such from happening again, not hold those responsible for it accountable? Reforming the NYSC scheme will not stop the violence that took away the lives of the corpers and hundreds of other Nigerians.

My write-up was quite particular about the recognition of the youth by the President, the matter of the NYSC I have already dealt with in another blog.

As you would have read from my piece, I already said it could have been better managed but the powers of organisation and meticulous management had been given up for the easier blanket cost allocation.

It is not perfect but it should not be the basis for considering everything else wrong.

As you have noted the fundamental problem is organisation and logistics, someone just did not want to be bothered with that minutiae and administration overhead and thereby we have a sensational and controversial topic to distract us from the more important elements of the event.

Regards,

Akin

Francisawe

I do appreciate your expression on the assistance provided by the government to aid the invitees.
You have to understand that such meeting by past government is not to show appreciation but to find another means for their unruly propaganda, buying of the youth conscience and unnecessary spending of scarce resoureces.
Without bias mind, you have to understand that the president can’t do this job alone. All the events and meetings are ideas and suggestions of the people around him. Yes, it is good, but do you know what has transpired underneath? That is the problem, no leader is as bad as we think, I can assure you. The problem is the people surrounding the leaders! His advisers, associates, party members and God fathers. Until we have good governance among the government agencies and institution these problem will persist…..I believe in hope and faith but really there can’t be sustained development if the nation policies protect GOD FATHERS, politicians in the name of immunity and greedy judges, and law enforcers.
I believe in prayer but this is not a prayer point issue, president J is here now after the people’s mandate but what had been his plans of actions? If he doesnt have any, my dear nigerian friend we have lost the track again for the next four years, because those around him are there to grab whatever they can and then bolt for the door!. They have no game plan what so ever.
I will appreciate it dearly if we can ask our president what are the plans of action to achieving all he had been telling us and it is high time he settle back in office and tell his associates no more event and conferences.
Just to give you peep hole to a working government among other things he had embarked upon I will be glad to let you know the Lagos government launched her first private power project, this is to provide uninterupted light for the people of lagos island…pls note this includes the high court and the hospitals. this project is channelled to the poor and artisans in that area.
I believe the president will do a lot , only if he turn his ear and mind away from the psychophants surrounding him.

Tosin Otitoju

I didn’t go to this week’s Youth Lunch with the President of Nigeria. I got a couple of invitations by email and text, to which I answered, “how many diners will be at the lunch?”Since I had no assurance that it would be a somewhat exclusive lunch – you know, eba and egusi soup with orange juice around the table with Mr. President – and not a rowdy carnival with us jamming to D’Banj music, I decided to respect myself and save my money. Read more at I’m Too Old For Youth Lunch

Pat Obiora

It was more than laziness and poor organisation (as you seem to suggest) that led to attendees at this lunch receiving such large sums of money as spurious “transport costs” (N50,000 for an attendee residing in Lagos? Really???) This was just another facet of the waste and “national cake” mentality that characterizes “governance” in Nigeria. I personally don’t believe that there was an onus on the government to reimburse the travel costs of attendees, but if they were hellbent on doing so, they should have done it properly. We need to stop making excuses for fundamentally immoral behaviour. If we keep justifying excess and illegitimate use of OUR funds, we become part of the problem.

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